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Against a backdrop of freezing rain, snow, and a swirling wind off the banks of the Humber Estuary, combined with a resolute Hull City side pushing hard for a top-flight place, this had all the ingredients of a difficult evening’s work for the visitors.

"We could have scored more but the opposition are a strong team and it was a tough tie; I am delighted with the display," he said. "This club means a lot to me so it was nice to get a positive reception from the fans of fans. The application of the lads was excellent."

The Rosenior has this place dear to him, given some of his family hail from Hull and his enjoyable period in management of the Tigers. This positive association was extended with a magnificent display from his team, who ultimately strolled into the next round of the FA Cup.

Clinical Finishing Seals Comfortable Win

Three days after surrendering a two-goal advantage in the Premier League, there was a sniff of vulnerability about them going into this intriguing tie. The packed Hull crowd evidently sensed it too, but Rosenior's men navigated the challenge perfectly.

The manager rang the changes, enacting seven of them to his XI. The match might and perhaps should have been decided earlier than it actually was, with both the Brazilian winger and the forward at fault for missing excellent opportunities to put Chelsea ahead in the opening period.

But, luckily for the visitors, Pedro Neto was in a much more clinical mood. He broke the deadlock with a spectacular long-range effort, which acted as the spark for his team to take command of the match. By the final whistle, they had 4 goals, with Neto netting a trio of them for a brilliant hat-trick.

The Forward's Redemption and Impact

Hull displayed plenty of fight all game, but the clearer opportunities consistently fell Chelsea’s way. Estêvão ought to have broken the scoring when he went past keeper Dillon Phillips before unbelievably firing over. Delap then had a comparable horror moment in front of goal against his former club.

He blocked a Phillips's kick which came back from the bar, and Delap started to celebrate believing the ball had gone over the line. It had not, and by the time he realised, Hull's defenders had responded to clear the threat.

The player had his head in his hands after that moment, but he was hugely influential from that point onward, providing three key passes. The opening was for the first goal as his through ball set up Neto to finish from range. Six minutes after the second half began, it was two as Neto's set-piece went directly in through the keeper's legs.

Tie Sealed and Attention Shifts

Seven minutes after Neto’s second goal, the match was put beyond doubt as a magnificent run from Delap teed up Estêvão to slide into an unguarded goal. The hat-trick hero then completed his treble as Delap once again delivered the decisive pass for the striker to calmly convert by a helpless goalkeeper.

By that stage, the effort Hull had put in in the opening thirty minutes had long since erased. Their priority must now return to achieving a return to the Premier League under their manager, who rested a number of first-choice individuals with that goal in mind.

"I think we earned at least one goal but if we perform like this we will be in a very good situation in the Championship," he said. "Keep fighting, maybe in the next matches this can be a positive example of how we must play."

There was great endeavour to the end, and they nearly got a late goal when a substitute hit a the upright in injury time. But this was the Blues' evening, and another positive step forward for their recently-appointed head coach at a stadium he is familiar with intimately.

Cup History Are Good

That made for an ultimately routine evening’s work, and the cup competition signs are positive from here for the winners. They have faced Hull on three previous times in this competition in the last decade and every single time, they have progressed to make the final. There is remains to be work in that respect, but this was another huge tick for the Chelsea boss.